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Monthly Archives: November 2016

Thanksgiving reminds us to be grateful for what we have and to thank others for their help and support.

We want to say thank you to our students for choosing Cleveland Community College. We know you have many options when it comes to continuing your education. We are proud to be able to serve you and appreciate the opportunity to do so.

In addition to being our students, we understand that many of you have other responsibilities including working full-time or part-time, and being parents, care givers, and spouses. We understand that time is as valuable to you as money, and we appreciate that you have chosen to spend some of it with us.

Our goal is to help you reach your educational and career goals, whether that means earning a degree to transfer to a four-year school; earning a degree, diploma or certificate to get a better job; learn a new skill to advance in your current career; or learning something new to simply enrich your life.

We couldn’t do all of that without our dedicated faculty and staff, so to you we say thank you as well. I often have the privilege to talk with students, and most of the time, they tell me about one or more of their instructors who spent extra time helping them and encouraged them to keep working toward their goal.

Did you know that Cleveland Community College and Cleveland County Schools have partnered to help students prepare for life after high school?

We want students to understand better the skills and training they need for a successful career before they graduate from high school. We want to help them find the information they and their parents need so they can make informed decisions about their future.

Earlier this year, CCC received two grants that enable the College to hire full-time career coaches to work within the county’s high schools and middle schools.

The first grant is from the NCWorks Career Coach Program. With funds from this grant two career coaches have already been hired and are currently working within the county’s high schools.

The career coaches work with staff at the high schools to help students create career plans and set up goals, discover which careers might match their interests, learn about opportunities to take college classes tuition free while still in high school, and more. They are available to meet with students one-on-one and even with parents.

Career coaches also help plan classroom presentations on topics such as résumé and cover letter writing, interview skills, and researching different types of jobs.

The second grant from the U.S. Department of Education will allow CCC to hire two additional full-time career coaches to work within the high schools and the middle schools throughout the county. This grant focuses on increasing the number of disadvantaged youth who complete high school and enroll in and complete a college education.

The overall goal of both these programs is to help Cleveland County’s youth prepare for life after high school, whether they want to enter the workforce immediately, learn a skill, or earn a degree at a community college or a four-year university.

Community colleges are for people who are not smart enough to attend a university.

Community college is no fun.

A community college education will get you nowhere in life.

Emmanuel Wallace came to Cleveland Community College with these thoughts in his mind. “The thought of my friends going off to attend Duke, NC State, or Carolina as I was stuck in Shelby made me feel subpar.”

He hadn’t been a great student in high school, but instead of listening to that voice in his head or letting negative feelings take hold, Emmanuel decided to take advantage of the community college experience. With that decision made, he discovered that community college is a place where students can learn to lead, where instructors know their students by name and are willing to spend extra time with them, and where students can form lasting friendships.

At CCC Emmanuel found opportunities to grow as a student and a person. He got involved in CCC’s Student Government Association, eventually becoming president. He made friends, had fun and gained valuable leadership experience. He even had an opportunity to meet and work with the College’s leadership.

Emmanuel Wallace

He took advantage of the opportunities and flourished. During his time at CCC, Emmanuel received multiple awards, won a NASA Space Grant scholarship, and earned an internship at a local company, with help from advisors and instructors who believed in him and were willing to help.

At the end of this semester, Emmanuel leaves CCC for the University of North Carolina at Charlotte to complete his bachelor’s degree in engineering.

As so many students before him, Emmanuel’s time at CCC helped him become a better student and find skills and talents he didn’t know he had. Now, he’s ready to tackle the big university with confidence because he’s done the work and put himself on the path to success.

This was Emmanuel’s way to an education; what’s your way? Find it at CCC. Contact Admissions at 704-669-4081 or admissions@clevelandcc.edu. Registration for spring classes is now open. It’s a great time to get started!